The Very First Thanksgiving Day by Rhonda Gowler Greene

Greene, Rhonda. (2002). The Very First Thanksgiving Day. New York: Scholastic Inc.

Grade Level:
I would recommend this book for students in grades K-3.

Author Credibility:
Greene included in her author’s note where she got some of her information. She read the pilgrim’s journal entries. These are found in “A Relation or Journal of the Proceedings of the Plantation Settled at Plymouth in New England.” She also thanks several people for helping with the research.

Summary:
The story starts on Thanksgiving Day. The author introduces the food they ate that day. The Indians are then introduced. They knew how to live through the winters and how to grow the food. The author then tells about the pilgrims they farmed the land and learned from the Indians. The author then goes from the houses that protected them to the harbor they landed at. The Mayflower is then described. This ship brought the pilgrims to America. Finally, they are at the land where it all began. The pilgrims prepare to come to America. Then the author takes you back through the journey. They are on the Mayflower, sailing across the ocean, to the harbor, then to their homes, learning from the Indians, and finally eating the food prepared for the Thanksgiving feast.

Standards:
Social Studies
- People, Places, and Environments
- Individuals, Groups, and Institutions
-Culture

Illustrations:
Illustrations for this book were done by Susan Gaber. They consist of paintings done with acrylic paint. They are very detailed, and they show what is going on in the story.

Access Features:
*Author’s Note
*Illustrator’s Note

How I would use the book in the classroom:
I would use this book around Thanksgiving. For older students I would have them do more research about certain parts of the book.

My response to the book:
I enjoyed the style this book was written in. I also loved looking at the illustrations in the book. The illustrations are very detailed and they can tell a lot about the time and what is going on.

Related Texts:
*Thanksgiving is for Giving Thanks by Margaret Sutherland
*The Story of the Pilgrims by H. L. Ross
*Pilgrim’s First Thanksgiving by Ann McGovern
*P is for Pilgrim: A Thanksgiving Alphabet by Carol Crane
*The First Thanksgiving Day: A Counting Story by Laura Krauss Melmed

Other:
This book is a picture book. It is written with a repetitive style. The words rhyme and flow from page to page. Both the front and the back covers of the book portray pilgrim and Indian children playing together.